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2014 Summary

Coach's clinic 2014

Thursday, October 9th - Sunday, October 12th - The 8th annual coaches clinic featured about 12 American coaches who spoke about a variety of subjects. The clinic was attended by about 150 coaches who traveled from all over the country to participate. The theme for the week seemed to be that the coaches have a huge responsibility to the next generation of Dominican youth, beyond baseball. The speakers spoke on subjects such as "Clean Heart", "Victory beyond Competition", "True Masculinity", "Devotionals with our Teams" and "The Parable of the Talents". During each afternoon, everyone went to a local field to discuss training techniques that the coaches can use to help their players. It seems strange that these coaches need help since so many players coming from the Dominican Republic into professional baseball . But they are trying to find better way to teach their players who are gifted with raw talent. They ask lots of questions and are interested in learning. The subject on Saturday night was about Baptism which led to a vigorous debate about what they have been taught about Baptism versus what the Bible says about it. On Sunday, we held a Baptism during which about 10 coaches participated and became Baptized.

Sunday, October 12th evening - After the conclusion of the coaches clinic, a team of American coaches went on the road to visit some churches that MGB supports in finances and training. The goal of MGB when it comes to churches is to teach them sound Biblical doctrine and to raise up leaders within the church. Ultimately, there will be network of strong community churches that the coaches and players can "plug in" to which will leverage the strong communities in the Dominican Republic, Haiti and beyond. We visited out first "church plant" in Santo Domingo on Sunday night, where they also held a baptism. There were lots of kids present, including a few who led the group in prayer and singing. The congregation was from one of the poorest of poor areas in downtown Santo Domingo but you would never know it from the energy of the congregation. This church is growing and seems to have strong leadership in place.